Lakshya, Satwik-Chirag create history

NEW DELHI, Jan 16: It was a double delight for India as World championship bronze medallist Lakshya Sen and doubles specialists Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty bagged their first Yonex-Sunrise India Open titles here on Sunday.

India's up and coming men's singles star Sen defeated current World Champion Loh Kean Yew in straight games 24-22, 21-17, while Satwik and Chirag got the better of top seeds Hendra Setiawan and Mohammad Ahsan 21-16, 24-22 to win the coveted titles.

The men's singles final was definitely the marquee match of the day with two world championships medallists facing off for the fourth time this year. Sen, who had won the bronze medal in his debut world championship last month, was first to get off the blocks as he controlled the rallies brilliantly and put Loh under pressure.

He soon raced to a 16-9 lead and though Loh began to find his rhythm, the Indian looked in total control as he had a five-point advantage at 19-14. But the world champion wasn't going to just fold up and he turned the tables on the Indian by clinching six straight points to earn a game point.

Sen saved two of them, wasted one himself but kept his cool to clinch the second and changed ends with a definite advantage.

The second game started on a more even keel as both players engaged in long rallies. The Singaporean upped the pace from the start but to Sen's credit, he was up to the task. The Indians were patient in the rallies and his opponent made mistakes under pressure.

At the same time, Sen was always ready to unleash his big cross-court smashes and that ensured that Loh could never breathe easy. And those smashes, one to the left and the other to Loh's right, clinched Sen his champion point and a place in history.

Earlier, second seed Busanan Ongbamrungphan of Thailand had to dig deep before beating compatriot Supanida Katethong 22-'0, 19-21, 21-13 to clinch the women's singles title.

Thailand's Benyapa and Nuntakarn Aimsaard defeated Russia's Anastasiia Akchurina and Olga Morozova 21-13, 21-15 to win the women's doubles title while Singaporean husband-wife combination of Hee Yong Kai terry and Tan Wei Han upset Malaysian third seeds Chen Tang Jie and Peck Yen Wei 21-15, 21-18 in the mixed doubles final.

Also read: India Open 2022: Saina starts campaign on winning note

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